Secondhand Promises
by StarlightNights
Summary: What happened in Vegas, didn't stay in Vegas.   Sequel to Based on Lies
1. 1: I'm Scared to Know

**Chapter 1 **

**I'm Scared To Know **

It's funny how much five years can change your life. Five years ago I was wild and living it up in Vegas. Like all young adults I was all about instant gratification. Drink a lot. Party hard. Short relationships that began and ended in rough sex. It was a live for the moment mentality. Everything was do or die. And I did it all. And now five years later... I don't know.

It wasn't a drastic change that happened one night. It was slow and gradual, sneaking up on me like a thief in the night. The nights at the bar got a little shorter. Having a hangover suddenly didn't sound worth it. The relationships got a little longer. The sex was still good but less frequent and not always necessary. And I wasn't the least bit disappointed by the small changes. Yeah, sometimes I still partied hard and enjoyed long bouts of rough and frequent sex. But I could now be completely content with sitting at home on a Friday night watching old movies in my pajamas.

It's not Vegas that changed my life. It probably should have. I should have sworn off of alcohol forever. But instead I returned home and my life returned to normal. Or at least what was normal for me. I met with a lawyer, in secret of course, signed some papers and that chapter of my life was over. In fact, it officially never even happened. And to celebrate Rose and I went out to a bar drank a lot and I left with a very cute boy. I panicked when I woke up in his apartment and double checked for a hidden ring or marriage certificate, you can never be too careful, but this time I was safe. I panicked again three weeks later when I realized I was a week late for my period. I praised the lord when the test was negative. And again I celebrated again with another night of drinking and a random guy hookup. Yeah, I know, you think I would have learned my lesson after all that. But at least I've gotten there now.

I never heard from Edward. But I never expected to. Sometimes I lie in bed and think about Edward. I wonder if his life has changed as much as mine. What's he doing? Is he married? Is he happy? Does he still sometimes think of me? I know it doesn't matter. That part of my life is over (or never even happened depending on who you ask). And my life is still changing. The thought of commitment doesn't make me break out into hives anymore. In fact, I kind of like long committed relationships. So much that I accepted a proposal a week ago. And this time, I plan on doing it properly. And that's where my story catches up with me.

I looked in the mirror again, making sure not a single hair is out of place. Five years ago, I wouldn't have given a shit. Especially since it's just family. But it's the first time I'm meeting his parents and that scares the shit out of me. I make a horrible first impression. I walk as fast as I can in the heels I'm wearing. It's moments like these that make me miss my old self. Being carefree and not worrying about what I look like. Those days are long gone. I do not want to see my picture in a tabloid under any headlines like these: **WTF is he thinking? WARNING: troll spotted outside of most eligible bachelor's home. **

I sigh heavily and straighten out the wrinkles in my skirt. I still hate dressing up. Maybe jeans and a T-shirt wasn't appropriate attire for breaking the news of my engagement but maybe a something more sensible? Something alone the lines of a pair of dress slacks and a nice blouse? Now I sound live my grandmother. I think I officially hate who I've become.

"I think something's burning," Jake shouts from the kitchen. I don't know why I left him in there by himself. He is hopeless.

I race into the kitchen and shake my head. "That's not smoke," I chuckle. "That's steam. It happens when you boil water."

"Oh." He frowns. "I'll try to remember that." He steps away from the stovetop and sighs. "I really wish you would have let me me take care of this all. You're doing so much work."

"This is not a moment that I want to happen in public."

"What? Are you that ashamed of me?"

"Me ashamed of you? Ha! What a joke. You should be ashamed to be seen with me."

"It's going to happen sooner or later. I don't know how long you want to continue sneaking around. I'm pretty sure that the media is going to get ahold of this any moment now. I'm surprised they haven't already."

"I know. I just like things the way they are right now. It's simple and easy. I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a celebrities girlfriend yet. That's a big responsibility."

"If you want this to work, you're going to have to get used to it. And you're more than just a celebrities girlfriend."

"I know, now get out of my kitchen and let me work."

He laughs and takes a step back. "It's not too late for me to call for catering or find a restaurant."

I turn to glare at him. "I like doing this."

"Fine," he concedes and walks out of the kitchen and parks himself in front of his gigantic flat screen.

And with that mistake, it's time to kick him out of my kitchen. Not that he should have been in there anyway. He may be a man of many talents but cooking was not one of them. I think that may be the first time he's ever been in ours and actually did something more than put something in the microwave and follow carefully worded directions.

I keep the kitchen running smoothly for the next twenty minutes, preparing the spaghetti and all the trimmings I decided to go along with it. I'm a real fucking Martha Stewart now. I laugh it off and continue the dinner preparations. From the next room I hear the load roar of the TV. Always too loud and always on sports. It's funny how I ended up with him when I thought that this was the last thing I wanted in a guy. Rosalie was always the one to fall for the Mr. Football type.

I catch my reflection in the appliances. High heels, black skirt, button up blouse, expensive jewelry all topped off with an apron and some matching pot holders. For a brief moment I pause and feel the familiar sting of tears in my eyes as my chest gets heavy and oxygen feels scarce. I am fucking Martha Stewart. Trapped in a self made prison and all.

I quickly push the thought from my mind. I am not trapped. I enjoy this. Most of the time. Everything has its exceptions. That's normal. And I especially feel pressured now planning my own engagement party and all. And having to tell my parents about it. And letting them know that I don't actually have an apartment in the city and that Jake and I have been living together for the past year and a half. Charlie is going to kill me.

I hear the doorbell and look at the clock. It has to be Charlie. He is always early. Renee can't be on time to save her life and Jacob's family wouldn't be coming for at least another hour. Before Jacob can even think about getting off the couch I rescue him. "I'll get it. You just try your best to keep an eye on the food." He groans but considering the alternative of being alone to greet my father, he accepts.

I pause, breathe deeply and open the door with the biggest smile I could muster. My smile slowly falls and I'm left speechless. It's not Charlie. It's not anyone who has been invited over. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Do you have something to tell me?" Rose sneers.

"Not now, Rosalie. I'm kind of in the middle of something." She crosses her arms and glares at me. Fuck me. I know this look. Rosalie with this look is not good. I sigh and look over my shoulder to yell, "I'll be right back."

"Who is it?" I see Jake peak around the corner.

"No one. Just one of those door-to-door church people. What do you call them?"

"The Jehovah's Witnesses?" He furrows his brow.

"Yeah, them." I nod, even if he can't see me.

"And you're going somewhere with them?"

"No, I told them to fuck off. But I think that cat got out. I'm going after her."

"Need help?" he asks, taking one step out of the kitchen.

"No. Just keep an eye on the food." I quickly push Rosalie and step outside, closing the door behind me. I ran her into the open garage and into the darkest corner. "What the fuck do you want?"

"I've tried calling you," she says, continuing to glare.

"I told you I'm very busy today. Like, don't have time for your bullshit kind of busy. So stop playing games and get to the fucking point or get the fuck out of here." I haven't cursed this much in a long time. It feels good.

She shrugs and lights a cigarette. "First, I tried to call you with some major news. Then I found out some major news about you. Well, I suppose they both concern you. And since you don't answer I decided to risk a visit."

I pull the cigarette from her mouth and stomp on it to extinguish it. "There's no smoking in here."

"No shit!" she exclaims. "You quit?"

"A long time ago actually. Don't you pay attention? Jacob..."

"I just don't get what you see in that asshole," she interrupted me.

"You're the one that introduced us," I remind her.

She rolled her eyes. "And I greatly regret that."

"The point, Rose?"

"First, I think you have something to tell me. I know that I don't exactly get along with Jacob but I didn't realize that meant we couldn't be friends anymore," she huffed.

"Rose, stop being so melodramatic. You know we're still friends. But I don't have time for this shit right now. Can we do this tomorrow or something?"

She shrugs. "Never mind." She turns to walk away but turns before she gets out of the garage. "I just thought that I would be the first person you would call."

"What?" I asked chasing after her. There is no way she knows about Jake and I. No one knows.

"You should watch T.V. more often. I learned a hell of a lot today. Nice ring by the way." Rose walks away from me again. "Is this your way of telling me I'm not invited to the wedding?"

How the hell did anyone find out. "Oh, shit. I'm sorry. Rose, this just happened. We set up a girls night for next weekend, I was going to tell you then. I wanted to do it in person. No one was supposed to know yet. Fuck!"

"I saw something else that I thought you'd be interested in too. But seeing as how you're so busy, I guess I will just be on my way," she says sauntering away.

"Rose, wait. I'll come over tonight. We can talk."

"Tonight will probably be too late."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough. Please hurl at least one insult at Jacob for me. Later, bitch." And with that she disappears.

Just as my hand reaches the doorknob my phone vibrates in my hand. A text from Rose. Now what? _Cant resist I have 2 tell U. Saw ur ex. May have told him where 2 find U. More big news on that but U will C L8R._

_What R U talking about? _I respond.

_Told U I had big news. Now hes on his way 2 C U. Thnk me L8R! ;)_

And before I can even respond I see what she means. Coming up my driveway with a cocky smile and fucking swagger is Mr. Vegas himself. This is a fucking nightmare. "What the fuck is this?" I ask to no one in particular. I bang the back of my head against the garage wall a few times. It doesn't help at all, but it is keeping me from hurting someone, well, other than myself. I respond to Rosalie quickly before I have to deal with another disaster. _Will murder U L8R!_

"Same old Bella," Edward laughs.

"Yeah, not exactly. What are you doing here," I snap, being less than hospitable.

"I was feeling a bit nostalgic. Thought it was time I see what my ex-wife was up to." He stops right in front of me, a little too close for my liking. I mean, I like it a little but I know I'm not supposed to now. Because we all know what happened the last time I let him get too close to me.

"I'm not your ex-wife, remember," I say taking a quick step away from him. "According to the papers we both signed, it never happened." I over exaggerate my smile and do a little danced, just to emphasize my happiness.

"But it did," he argues.

I groan in frustration. Of all the times to have my past come back to bite me in the ass. "Look, I'm all for this whole blast from the past or whatever you want to call it. But now is not a very good time for me."

"Hey, babe," I hear Jacob call out the front door.

"Yeah?" I ask, clasping a hand over Edward's mouth to ensure he will stay quiet. This is not even close to a meeting I want to happen.

"You're chasing a ghost," Jacob yells. "She's still inside."

"Ok. I'll be in in a second."

"Oh," Edward makes a face of mock surprise. "There is a new boy."

"Of course there is a boy. But he's not really new. And you never really were the boy. You were just... a bit of fun." I shake my head and walk towards the door.

Edward takes a step and follows. "So I get to come in and meet this boy?" He arches one eyebrow.

"No," I nearly shout. "Never." I say blinking a few times in surprise. He's even more of an ass today than he was five years ago. "_I _am going inside. And _you _are going home."

"Bella, I didn't come all the way out here for fun."

"I'm sure you didn't. Because this isn't fun. I know it's not for me."

"Just give me a minute."

I watch Charlie's car go past the drive and park in the street. Damn. Worst timing ever. "I don't have a minute. Try again later. Like in another five years," I say trying to push him out of my life, physically as well as mentally.

"Bella, I am trying to be nice here, can you do the same?"

No, not right now. I really don't have time." Panic begins to set in as my heart races. "Our lives intersected five years ago. For me, that's almost a lifetime. So much has changed. We've both moved on. Like normal people do. You never called. And I didn't care. I never expected you to. And I really didn't expect this."

"I tried to call," he argues. "But I couldn't call a fake number!"

I raise a finger to hush him. "And I left a real one too. But I really don't have time for this. You _have _to go." I speak quickly, moving him towards the side exit of the garage. "But this has almost been fun. Let's do it again in another five years." I again try pushing him out the door but he still won't budge. "Seriously? Do you have to always be such an asshole!"

"I'm trying really hard not to be," he defends himself. "But it's my only defense against angry bitches like you."

I hear a car door slam. "Whatever it is, fine. Whatever you want. I'll do it. It just needs to wait until tomorrow," I beg him. And he smirks at me. It's that crooked smirk that he gave me in Vegas when he was being so hot that I wanted to... must forget about that.

"Neither of us, are very patient people, Bella. And you haven't exactly proven yourself as very trustworthy."

"I don't care right now." I can hear Charlie's footsteps on the concrete of the driveway. "You _need _to leave." I push my index finger into his chest. "I will meet you tomorrow at noon in the coffee house in the center of town, the Cool Beans Cafe. I swear it. But I also swear to this, if you do not get off my property, without being noticed in the next thirty seconds, I will destroy you. You've seen my temper in action before and that is not even the half of it."

He moves closer to me. "I can see the familiar anger written all over your face. And I've heard you say what that does to you before. Is there time for a quick option B?"

I lean in close to whisper in his ear. I also reach between his legs and take his manhood in my right hand and give it a gentle squeeze, it's still enough to cause him discomfort I'm sure. "I don't know how you got in this development because the security is supposed to fucking awesome. But get the fuck out right now before I render your testicles utterly useless." I give a quick tight squeeze, enough to get the don't-fuck-with-me message across.

"I hear you," he says in a high pitched voice as he backs away. He gently massages himself and retreats through the door. "Tomorrow it is then." And he finally disappears.

I take several deep breaths to calm my nerves. I run my hands along the skirt and try to press out the invisible wrinkles. And I plaster on a big fake smile and walk out the garage and greet my father.

Crisis averted. At least for now. But what the fuck am I supposed to do tomorrow?


	2. 2: I'm Tangled Up in You

**Chapter 2**

**I'm Tangled Up in You**

I can see him sitting there through the window. Of course there are like a million girls around him all gossiping, 'is that him?'. I cringe. I have to talk to him or he's probably going show up at the house again. But I really don't want to go inside. Too risky. In the day of twitter and cell phone video I do not want my face plastered all over the web for the world to see. It will get me in way too much trouble. So I sit for a long time and try to think my way out of it. Then I have a moment of genius. I pull my hair back, put on some sunglasses and dial. I ask the coffee barista to hand the phone off to her celebrity customer and a few quick seconds later he is standing beside me.

"Where is your car?" I question, grabbing his arm. He leads me to it and I force him in.

"Why do I feel like I am in a spy movie?" he questions as I force him to buckle his seat belt. Saftey first.

"Because all I need is for my fiancé... oh, don't give me that look. Of course I'm trying it again. But I don't want him to see pictures of me with you on the internet. Just drive and I will direct you," I command.

"Why don't you just drive?" He furrows his brow at me.

"Because I walked. My car is... well it's a little difficult for me to go unnoticed in it."

"And why on earth would anyone want to be seen with me?" He laughs then goes back to our original subject. "Why didn't you just tell him where you were going?"

I laugh. "Tell him that I have a coffee date with the guy that I once upon a time accidentaly married? That would go over well. Especially since now your the new Hollywood boy toy." Of course he couldn't be some auto mechanic working in Detroit or something. He had to go and become and actor. And he just had to fall into the biggest movie of the summer and steal everyone's heart. Does my luck suck or what? Who exepcts their one night stand to turn out to actually be famous in the future? Stuff like that just doesn't happen in real life.

"What? We're old friends." He shrugs.

"We were never friends." I shake my head. "We knew each other for about twelve minutes. We spent four minutes drinking. Four minutes yelling. And four minutes fucking. That doesn't make us friends. It makes us people that should probably go their separate ways."

"So tell me a little bit about the new guy."

"What are you doing here, Edward?" I cut to the chase. I'm not much for small talk. "We have nothing to say to each other. It's been five years. We haven't so much as sent each other Christmas cards."

"I don't know." He shrugs. "I guess I was just looking for an old friend."

"Like I said, we were never friends."

He looked at me. "But we were close."

"By accident. It was a mistake. We did what people all across the country do on a daily basis. We sought comfort in alcohol and sex. Then we just took it to the next level. It shouldn't have happened."

"I quit drinking," he admits, picking at some fuzz on his pants. "About three years ago. I made a lot of mistakes in my life. And most of them stemmed from the kinds of nights that we shared. It's been good. Haven't had a drop of alcohol in 8 months."

"I'm happy for you." I nod and tell him to stop the car in a small secluded park. "Is this like, part of one of the steps or something?"

"No." He smirks. "Like I said, I was just looking for a friend. I know you say we're not, but I feel like we are. Right after Vegas, things changed."

"I'll say so, you became a movie star."

He nods. "Yeah," he says somberly. "And you were the last person I met to truly be honest to me. And you still are. You've been basically trying to tell me nicely to fuck off. I just miss that, the honestly, people not trying to kiss my ass."

"You came a long way for me to just treat you like a human being. You could have called and I would have told you to fuck off just the same."

"That's not what I mean." He pauses and runs his fingers through his hair. "You're still treating me like the same guy I was five years ago."

"And why would that change? You acted like an asshole then. You're acting like an asshole now." I pause and try to calm myself. "If that's what this is about, I'm out. I can't do it. I can't help you fix your problems. I've got problems of my own now. I can't help you through whatever Hollywood complex you have now."

He laughs and shakes his head. "It's not a Hollywood complex. Like I said, I quit drinking two years ago. Had a few relapses but nothing I couldn't handle. And since then…" He licks his lips. "I've just been thinking about the past."

"The past is over. You need to get over it and move on. Step six or something on that whole process. I don't know, I'm making it up. But it sounds right." I talk so quickly and wonder if he understood anything I've said.

And at that moment Edward seems to lose it a little bit. "Can you shut the fuck up and let me talk?" There's the Edward I know. "I'm a firm believer that all things happen for a reason. Five years ago wasn't just an accident."

"Tell me about it!" I throw up my hands. "It helped you quit drinking. And it made me stop being such a drunken whore. After a few more slip ups. But that's beside the point." I see the anger shooting out of his eyes. "Sorry. I'll try not to interrupt again."

"I just feel like, maybe we weren't finished."

I shake my head and laugh again. "If things happen for a reason then, yes. We are finished." I pause and look away. "You never called."

"You left a number to a very cranky old lady that does not like wrong numbers."

"And I gave the dude, your friend, your brother, the one that was very interested in watching us have sex, I gave him the read one. And you still never called. We're over. We've been over."

He again shakes his head. "I never got that. He never gave it to me."

"Well, there you go. It still wasn't meant to happen."

"No. Do you think it's a coincidence that I show up the night you're announcing your engagement?"

"Yes. Horrible timing your part by the way. Worst ever. If I would have had a gun. I would have been forced to use it and bury you in the back yard."

He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. "Can you please just go along with it? Give me a week. That's all I want."

"I don't have a week. I'm a very busy girl these days. I've already given you too much time. I have to get back to my life."

"One week. Please."

"I can't. I can't make a weeks worth of excuses."

"Then don't make excuses," he argues.

"I have to. I can't tell the truth on this one. Let everyone know that five years ago I fucked up that bad. Not only will my father kill me and you. But so will my fiancé."

Edward shrugs. "I could take him."

That makes me laugh. "I don't think so."

"You've never seen me fight before. I'm pretty good. And I've got some guns." He flexes to make his point.

I laugh even harder. "Sorry, I don't mean to be rude. But, no." I shake my head. "He'd eat a guy like you for breakfast. So will his friends. Especially his friends. They would tear you apart. You could bring your whole posse and that still wouldn't help. He's…you'll find out, I'm sure. I'm surprised you don't already."

We spend the ride back to the coffee house in silence. He parks the car.

I rest my hand on the door handle but it doesn't open. "I would like to get out of the car now," I request in my nicest voice possible. But he doesn't budge. "Please." I try again. "Let me out of the fucking car!" I shout, losing my patience.

And that gets a smile out of him. "Since you're not playing nice. Neither am I. Give me a week or I'm telling your meathead boy toy about us." I grip the door handle until my knuckles turn white. Not fair! "I'll let you think about it." He grabs a pen from his pocket and writes a number on my arm. "Call me tonight and let me know what you're decision is." He unlocks the door, I fall out in shock and he pulls away.

That's it. I'm fucked.


	3. 3: You Can Go, You Can Stay

**Chapter 3**

**You Can Go, You Can Stay**

I slowly walk into Jacob's den. I know he has plans for the day and won't even know that I'll be gone, but I'll have to tell him eventually. "Hey, baby." I smile and wrap my arms around him as I take in the soft scent of him.

"Hey." He returns my smile and gives me a light kiss.

"Have fun today."

"Yeah, you too." He nods, looking at his reflection.

"Actually, I will. I have plans to meet an old friend for lunch."

He turns to me sharply and gives me a jaded look. "It's not Rose, is it?"

"No." I shake my head and laugh. "How am I ever going to get my best friend and my fiance to like each other?" It should be something that is so simple.

"Ok. Well have fun then." It really couldn't have been that easy. He doesn't want to know who. Or why. Or anything. Not that I'm complaining or anything. That's cool. "Old friend from school?" Damn. Spoke too soon.

"No. Not exactly." I sit down in his chair and watch him mess with his hair. He takes more time to mess with his than I do. And the end result is his looks the same as it does right after he wakes up.

"Well, what exactly is it?" he teases. "I have to keep an eye on you."

"Just an old friend."

"Not an old boyfriend?" He raises an eyebrow. I try to not look guilty. But I don't think it worked. Technically he never was a boyfriend. "Uh-oh." He smirks and lowers himself to me, teasing me.

I roll my eyes and push him away. "Not like that. He's in recovery. Alcoholic. Going through the twelve steps, or however many there are. He's at whatever step is making amends." It's not a total lie.

He raises his eyebrow again. "What kind of amends does he have to make with my girl? Am I going to have to hurt him?"

"No." I laugh. "I don't know what he thinks he has to make amends for." I shrug. "Our relationship was so brief, I wouldn't really consider it much of anything. But I'm not going to mess with the recovery process. If he thinks he has to do it, I guess I'm willing to help."

"That depends on what kind of help he wants." Jacob continues to harass me.

"I think I can handle sandwiches and small talk, but I'll be sure to call you if it gets out of hand." I roll my eyes and walk out.

XXXXX

I sit across the table from Edward, tapping my fingernails on the table. He so desperately wanted to spend time with you for whatever the reason may be, but right now he is mute. I rest my head in my hand and stare at him impatiently. And finally I can't take it anymore. "If were just going to sit here, I have other things I'd rather be doing."

"No." He shakes his head. "It's just…where do you start?"

"I don't know. You wanted to do this."

"Right." He nods. I am really getting annoyed with him.

"Just start somewhere, or I'm walking out." I plead with him. I am really trying to be nice, though I really don't know why. "Like, why are we here? Why are you here?"

He shrugged. "It felt right." He looks up into my eyes. "I've just been thinking about you."

"I think about a lot of things and I don't impulsively go and do them. There are plenty of people that I think are very attractive and would be very good in bed but I'm not flying all over the country trying to find these people and have sex with them."

He furrows his brow. "I'm not trying to have sex with you."

"Well, you tried the other night." I remind him.

He shook his head. "That wasn't my intention." He paused. "I didn't mean to be rude like that. But our history is all about sex, so seeing you again just kind of reminded me of that."

"I hope that it doesn't continue." I hold up my hand and remind him of my ring.

"No, I got that out of my system. I'm ready to move on."

"Wonderful!" I smile. "So we're done then."

"You still have the same quirks." He shakes his head.

"Some things I just can't change." I shrug. "But seriously, let's get to the point. I gave you a week, but I would love to get this over with quickly."

Edward laughs at me. "No chance."

"Why? What are we even doing?" I laugh. "Sipping coffee, pretending like we give a shit?"

"I give a shit," he insists.

"Good for you. What do you give a shit about? You won't even let me know. I'm just here and we're just shooting the shit and I don't even get why."

"I told you why. It feels right."

I roll my eyes. "Going home and taking a nap sounds right to me, can I do that?"

"Drop the sarcasm, please."

"I don't want to." I smile. "I've always been this way. You should remember that."

"Yeah. Hard to forget that."

There was another long pause between us. "Seriously, if you don't start talking. I am leaving. I don't give a shit. Tell all my dirty little secrets. But I am not going to sit here and pretend like I'm having fun just to appease you."

"I don't expect you to." He shrugged. "I just want to see if we could be friends."

"We can't. I don't want to be. I want you to go away. And I want to go home. I want to forget all about this."

"Do you really?" He questions, his eyes searching me. "The ring you have on is a little bigger than the one I gave you." He observed. "Do you still have it?"

I do. But I don't want to admit it. I don't want to give him any hope. I want him to leave so my life will return to normal. Because him in my life is not normal. Being near him is just reminding me of who I used to be. And what great fun it was. "I don't know." I shrug my shoulders trying to play nonchalant. "I guess it's got to be somewhere. I really haven't thought about it."

Edward smiles. I really big and stupid smile. "Why are you lying to me, Bella?"

"I'm not lying." I try to defend myself. "Why would I lie about a thing like that? I either have it or I don't. And what difference does it really make?"

"It makes a difference because maybe you're caring a little more than you let on." He shrugs. "Maybe you saved that ring to remind yourself."

"Of what?" I scoff. "Of how stupid I used to be?"

"Bella, come on. You're living with some guy. You know exactly where that ring is. It's either gone or hidden. Because I know you don't want him to know about us. That's not something you're not going to leave laying around for him to find."

"So?" I scoffed. "Maybe it's still in a box at my dad's. I don't know. I haven't seen it in years." This man just won't let go.

Edward groaned in frustration. "Stop lying! I'm not asking a lot from you. Can't you just-"

"No, I can not." I interrupt him. "I shouldn't have to do anything for you. We parted ways 5 years ago and I never asked for a trip down memory lane. I like where my life is now. I'm happy."

"You seemed happy then too."

"And at one point in time getting married to a complete stranger seemed like a good idea too. And we both know how that worked out."

"Please," he pleaded with me softly. "I don't think that this is too much to ask. At one point in time… I don't know. We both thought that being together was a good idea," he argued.

"And at one point in time millions of people had slaves. And at one point millions of people thought that all Jews should be round up and burned alive. I can keep going. Everyone makes mistakes. And we are supposed to learn from them."

"And we are. We're sipping coffee, not doing shots." He shrugs. "Just because we are still talking doesn't mean we're going to go out and make the same mistakes again." He pauses to take a sip of his coffee. "I just think that maybe there was more to be said between us."

"And why do you think that? I know you found religion or whatever and believe that all things happen for a reason. But if you really believe that, don't you think that maybe over the past 5 years something should have brought us together. I mean, more than you stalking me or whatever it is you are doing now. Like fate. The two of us somehow being in the same place at the same time or something." I finish and he shrugs. And he's got a smile o his face that I just want to smack off. "What?"

"Well, maybe we have and we just don't know it."

I laugh. "Sure, lets sit here for three years and talk about all the things we've been doing over the past five years and see if our schedules have matched up. Like that's even possible." I scoff. "And it's not like we are even close to being in the same group of friends." I shrug. "You're a movie star. I'm just your everyday average girl." 

"Who just happens to be dating Mr. Superbowl MVP," he interjects.

I bit my lip and nod. "So you've heard. Is that how you were able to look me up?"

"No." He shakes his head. "I didn't know you were involved with anyone until you told me so. This might come as a shock to you, but I don't really follow football so much. Especially football players dating lives."

"So who told you?" I inquired.

"Even if I don't follow their personal lives, someone does because it's all over the internet."

"Of course it's all over the internet." I laugh. "We've been dating for almost four years now."

"It's not the dating that made headlines last night." He shrugs. "It was that very large diamond ring on your finger."

Great. I thought I had more time than that. "So that means nothing."

"No, it means we have the possibility of meeting over the past few years." He explains slowly. And I don't get it. "I'm a celebrity. He's a celebrity. I'm sure we've been in the same place at the same time."

I roll my eyes. "That's a stretch." I sip my coffee. "Jake's very low key. He doesn't do all the celebrity things. Plus, he's not a celebrity in the same way you are. He plays football. That is so different."

"Not that much. I see athletes at events all the time. Fundraisers. Award shows. They're all over the place."

"Yeah. Sure. The big ego sellout athletes that don't care about anything other than being famous. Jake doesn't do all that shit. He would rather sit at home in his sweats."

"Well…" Edward starts but I interrupt.

"You've got more of an ego than him!" I shout. "So don't even start that. He might be successful and popular but that does not make his ego large." I pause. "If he did would he really have proposed to me? He could have had anyone. Actress. Singer. Model. All the above. But he didn't. He chose me. He chose a simple girl, living a simple life."

Edward smiles at me. "You're far from simple."

"That's beside the point." I shake him off. "If his celebrity status meant so much to him then he wouldn't have chosen me."

Edward shrugs simply. "I did."

I smirk. Damn, this guy is persistent. "You weren't famous back then." I remind him. I am going to win this argument if it kills me.

"I am now."

I lower my coffee down hard, splashing some over the side. "Is that some kind of messed up proposal?"

"No." He laughs at me. "I'm just saying that you aren't what you're describing yourself to be. You're not simple. You're not ordinary. You're not plain. You are beautiful. You are smart. You are everything that a guys looks for in a girl."

"And how would you know?" I shout at him. "You keep forgetting that you don't even know me."

"I know enough about you," he insists.

"What is my last name? My favorite color? TV show? Anything? You don't know these things."

"I don't need to know those things." He shrugs. "Those little material things don't mean anything." I wait for him to explain. Because, honestly it sounds a lot like bullshit to me. "I know that you have a very fiery temper. I know that when you get mad at the opposite sex you either beat them up or have sex with them. I know that you are not a whore but you enjoy sex almost as much as a guy does. I know that you act though but on the inside you are an amazing woman with a big heart."

"The same is true for almost every girl in this room." I shrug. "You're not impressing me."

"Then give me a chance to get to know you."

"I am. I'm giving you a week."

"Then start cooperating."

"I am! What do you want from me? I really don't want to do this because I don't see the point. I hate to consider you an ex because really we were never that involved. But because that is what you seem to consider us, I will go with it. I don't talk to any of my ex's. Do you?"

"No."

"So then what the hell are you doing here? You break it off with someone and its over. Everyone moves on with their lives and don't look back. Or at least that's what I do. And I think that is pretty normal."

"Yes." He nods. "But we didn't start normal."

"And we aren't going to end very normal either if you keep it up," I threaten.

"We didn't even really start before we stopped. We never gave it a chance."

"I haven't given lots of guy's chances. You can't date everyone. You can't even date everyone that you know."

"But don't you feel like we should have. I mean, we were so close for those few days."

"No. We had sex for those few days. Its not like either one of us hasn't done that before."

"But it felt different."

"Because it wasn't a classic fuck and run? It was a very rare extended fuck and run."

"No. Like you said all things happen for a reason. We met that night. Fate brought us together and we chose not to listen. Then, last week I ran into your fiancé. We were both making an appearance for 'Make A Wish' and guess who I saw on his arm but you. Bella Swan. The most amazing girl I ever let slip through my fingers."

"And you think that's fate? The fate is, I'm with him. I am with someone else. That should have been a big hint."

"I didn't mean that we should go out and get married again. I just think that maybe we weren't done writing our story. Maybe we are supposed to be friends. Maybe you introduce me to someone. I don't know. Anything is possible."

"Sure anything is possible. It's possible that by meeting with you today it sets in motion the events of my death. That's what life is. A random string of events from birth to death. Random being the key word here. I see people everyday that doesn't mean I'm somehow connected to them."

He rolls his eyes. "Stop talking and let me finish. That morning I saw you, I got a package." He explains slowly. "I opened it up and it was some old luggage I had lost. I travel a lot and constantly lose shit so it could have been anything. But it was from my Vegas trip. How it had made its way there I don't know. In those five years I had moved three times and… I don't know. But I finally got it and right on top was our photo album. Then I go out that night and I see you. Don't you think that means something."

"Yes. It means you're reading too much into this." I laugh. "I ate waffles for breakfast this morning. And maybe that guy over there did too. Does that mean we're connected in some odd way?"

Edward sighs heavily. "Why do you have to argue everything?"

"Because that is what I do." I smile.

He reaches his had from across the table and grabs mine. "Can you feel that?"

"Of course I can feel your hands, stupid."

"No." He shakes his head and loops his fingers with mine. "The same electricity we had before."

I pause. My heart is racing and my stomach is in knots. "No." I shake my head. That is such a lie. Every time we touch, some kind of magic happens. My pulse quickens and my breathing becomes heavy. My stomach drops and my panties get moist. I have to leave before I do something stupid. "Edward, I have to go." I offer him a small smile. "Call me tomorrow if you need but understand that nothing is going to change. I'm taken and I'm happy."

"I can see that," he says, though I'm pretty sure he's lying.

"And I want it to stay that way." I remove my hand from his and exit the shop. I get to my car and look to the clock. I hope that Jacob doesn't have a late night. I need him to come home and satisfy me. I don't know how he did it, but Edward got me all worked up and I feel like I might hurt someone if I don't get laid.


End file.
